DonorsChoose has seen a banner year for donations in 2023, setting records by collecting nearly $10 million during Teacher Appreciation Week in May

'Call of Duty' will remain on the PlayStation after Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard/

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 15, 2023--

The job posting amid a strike partly driven by AI fears triggers an angry reaction from actors.

Brand new AI shoes have grabbed online attention as the stompers claim to enable wearers to be the "world's fastest shoe" that allows users to "walk at the speed of run." The "Moonwalkers" can accelerate the wearer's walking speed up to 11 km/h (seven miles per hour), a 250 per cent speed increase which means those who use them can walk up to 2.5 times faster. Shift Robotics, an American start-up is the company behind the motorised shoe, and while there are wheels on the design but you don't need to worry about maintaining your balance as they are not like rollerblades because they are not freewheeling and are secured with a magnetic buckle. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter While the AI's algorithm picks up on the user's walking behaviour in under 10 steps as it adapts your walking gait. In terms of battery life, the shoes can be charged anywhere, anytime, with any USB-C PD charger and can be fully charged within 1.5 hours for over 6 miles of range. Demonstration videos of the Moonwalkers in action quickly went viral on TikTok as people, with one clip receiving 25.6m views. @shiftrobotics What Are Moonwalkers??? ? ? Moonwalkers are the world’s fastest shoes that allow you to walk up to 7 mph, thats slightly double your average walking speed! ? ? Do you think this is the future of transportation? ?♂️ ? #transportation #transportationdesign #moonwalkers #eshoes #electricshoes #worldsfastestshoes #ShiftRobotics #newtech #newgadgets #electrictransport #electrictechnology The company’s founder and CEO, Xunjie Zhang came up with the Moonwalkers concept after he was almost hit by a car while commuting to work on a scooter. "Like the moving walkways you see in airports, with every step you're making, the conveyer belt moves underneath your feet," Zhang explained to Insider. "The faster you walk, the faster the shoes walk with you". Zhang, who has a Master's in mechatronics from Carnegie Mellon University, worked alongside a team of race car engineers, roboticists, and footwear designers who took five years to build the shoes. People from ages 15 to over 60 have tested the shoes out and Zhang told the publication they were able to walk in the shoes "pretty proficiently" within 10 to 15 minutes of getting them on. On the product's Kickstarter crowdfunding page, it reads: "...a lot of people don't rely on walking. This is surprising, considering it's much safer, more convenient, and better for the environment. Plus it requires no added skill like bikes or skateboards." "The problem is that it was just too slow and inefficient. So we made it our mission to enhance walking instead of replacing it." So far, $329,409 has been raised on the Kickstarter page since it launched in October last year. If you're interested in a pair of the Moonwalkers, they are only available in the US and a pair costs $1399 shift robotics according to Insider, the company has received over 2,000 orders for them as of May 2023. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Project management apps can be simple or extraordinarily complex. Celoxis gives the best of both

The US Federal Trade Commission has sued to stop Microsoft buying Call of Duty developer Activision Blizzard. It is just the latest problem for the deal, which has already been blocked by UK regulators. If completed, it will become one of the largest takeovers ever – but has faced scrutiny from regulators around the world, who argue that it might cause problems for the gaming market. The FTC's Monday filing in a federal court in San Francisco seeks a restraining order and injunction to stop Microsoft's $69 billion purchase of the California gaming company behind hit franchises such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. Microsoft, maker of the Xbox game system, has been struggling to win worldwide approval for the deal with just over a month before the deadline to close it, according to the contract it signed with Activision. “We welcome the opportunity to present our case in federal court," said a statement Monday from Brad Smith, Microsoft's vice chair and president. "We believe accelerating the legal process in the U.S will ultimately bring more choice and competition to the market.” The FTC already took Microsoft to court to block the merger, but that was before the U.S. agency's in-house judge in a trial set to start on Aug. 2. That administrative process doesn't preclude the parties from closing the deal. The contract between Microsoft and Activision required the deal to close by July 18, but the FTC's latest action seeks to stop that from happening. “Microsoft and Activision Blizzard have represented in the past that they cannot close their deal due to antitrust reviews of the transaction in other jurisdictions," the FTC said in a statement Monday. "But Microsoft and Activision have not provided assurances that they will maintain that position. In light of that, and public reporting that Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are considering closing their deal imminently, we have filed a request for a temporary restraining order to prevent them from closing while review continues.” Microsoft's other main obstacle is in the United Kingdom, where antitrust regulators have also taken action to block the acquisition. The all-cash deal announced in January 2022 has been scrutinized by regulators around the world over fears that it would give Microsoft and its Xbox console control of Activision's hit franchises and give it an unfair boost in the emerging business of cloud-based game subscriptions. It could be the priciest tech industry merger in history. Fierce opposition has been driven by rival Sony, which makes the PlayStation gaming system. Microsoft sought to counter the resistance by striking a deal with Nintendo to license Activision titles like Call of Duty for 10 years and offering the same to Sony if the deal went ahead. European regulators representing the 27-nation bloc approved the deal last month on condition that Microsoft make some promises meant to boost competition in the cloud-based gaming market. A number of other countries, including China, Japan, Brazil and South Korea, have also approved it. But the blockbuster deal has remained in jeopardy because of the surprise April decision by the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority and the ongoing case in the U.S. Microsoft in late May filed an appeal of the British regulator's decision and has also voiced strong public opposition directed at top government officials. U.S.-based consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, an opponent of the deal, welcomed the FTC's move Monday. “Although the agency has already used its authority to block the merger through administrative proceedings, Microsoft is pushing to culminate the purchase of Activision before the agency can finish its process," said a statement from Public Citizen's competition policy advocate Matt Kent. ""By filing in federal court to enjoin the transaction, the FTC is showing that it won’t back down in the face of Microsoft’s escalatory tactics.” Additional reporting by Associated Press

A Republican Congresswoman has shared an image of what appears to be a Batman balloon, claiming that it is an unidentified flying object, ahead of a debate on UFOs in Washington next week. Anna Paulina Luna tweeted about the material she has gathered for the House Oversight UFO hearing, consisting of pictures of several alleged sightings. But a number of Twitter users questioned the credibility of one of the images that shows an object in the air shaped like Batman’s face, leading to speculation that officials have confused a party balloon for a UFO. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter “The military ‘leaked’ a photo of a Batman party balloon and claimed it was a UFO. That seriously made me doubt their ability to analyze anything,” said one person. Another said: “My father was a pilot for 20 years, they make mistakes all the time. I just showed you a picture of when a fighter pilot confused a Batman party balloon for a UFO that had no signs of propulsion.” But, one user who believes it is a UFO, said: “I think there is a massive difference between a hot air balloon and a Batman balloon you buy at Dollar Tree for $4.99 and I am pretty sure you know that! Pilots are not mistaking a Batman balloon as a UFO & the balloon ain’t making it to 25-30 thousand feet” “The pic with a blue background near the center is definitely a UFO and not just a party balloon,” argued another. The debate around UFOs is gaining pace in the US. The House Oversight Committee will hold a hearing on the issue next week after Republican congressmen and women promised to look deeper into the issue. It comes after unconfirmed claims from a former intelligence official that the US military had found crashed alien spacecraft. The Pentagon has said it hasn't discovered any information to substantiate this claim. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was asked on Monday if he believes in aliens, in light of the hearing. "I will continue to see," McCarthy said. "But I think if we had found a UFO, I think the Department of Defense would tell us because they would probably want to request more money." "I'd love to see whatever facts and information we have," McCarthy added. "I'm very supportive of letting the American people see what we have, where we go." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

An overview of the media in Slovenia, including links to broadcasters and newspapers.

In September 2019, an estimated 250,000 people took to the streets of New York City. The marchers, who

Former teacher Alvin Irby created Barbershop Books, a nationwide literacy program that turns barbers into ambassadors in its mission to encourage thousands of boys to read for fun.

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 1, 2023--